What is Dental night guards ? Is it useful ?

My husband used to grind his teeth in the nights. We went to a dentis and told regrding this. He said this can cause his teeth to be crooked if left like this. He prescribed some thing called Dental night guards. What are thse ? Is this useful for teeth grinding ?

Hello and thank you for your questions.
Crooked teeth that don't close together like puzzle pieces may result in the body wanted to get a more balanced bite. This normally occurs in your sleep where you brain says, this doesn't feel just right, I need to make things better. So your teeth start to grind to try and smooth down the bite to a more balanced fit. This does not necessarily help your teeth, this can cause teeth to loosen if combined with poor oral hygiene, tooth sensitivity, sore jaw muscles, neck muscles and lower back muscles, pressure headaches, pain in the jaw joints, clicking of the jaw etc.

A night guard is a device that is like a hard or soft retainer that seats on your teeth and has a nice balanced surface for your opposing teeth to rest on. It's like a smooth ice skating rink for your teeth. This device helps improve the grinding but may not stop it completely. The good news is that your teeth will be grinding on a plastic device rather than your teeth and it will reduce the risk of losing tooth structure.

These devices are great for grinding. I prefer hard night guards because the firmness helps prevent them from breaking down and they don't flex like soft night guards which in your sleep may be perceived as food and induce more grinding. I personally use a night guard and found that it has improved my bruxism condition greatly.

Night guards are myofunctional appliances which are placed in between the upper and lower teeth to prevent bruxism.It is prepared by taking the impressions of the upper and lower arch.This are transpernet made up of semiflexible material and acts like a cushion while grinding the teeth.Bruxism can cause grinding of teeth, sensitivity and muscle spasm.I would suggest you to follow the instructions given by your Dentist properly.

hello
welcome to HCM,
I read your problem & the best solution of your problem is night guard.
Your husband is suffering from involuntary habit of clenching of teeth known as bruxism & since it occurs more in night, so its known as bruxomania.
It can be due to stress & anxiety.If occurs only in night than it may be due to abnormal bite or missing or crooked teeth.
Symptoms & associated problems with this habit are:-
-facial or jaw pain
-tooth sensitivity due to wearing away of teeth
-loose teeth
-gum damage
To avoid all these problems you need to go for night guards.
A night-guard is a horse shoe-shaped plastic appliance with shallow border that can be worn on upper or lower arch.It protects the teeth from clenching & grinding pressure by cushioning affect between upper & lower jaw.It also reduces TMJ problems by muscle relaxation.I think you should go a head.

If your husband grinds his teeth during night, it is called as Bruxism or night grinding in dental language & it occurs generally due to underlying emotional stress or occlusal irregularities.

Night guards are meant to protect the teeth structure from damage due to extra or heavy loads put on them during grinding against each other.

Due to grinding of the teeth, heavy pressure which is put on the teeth lead to trauma to periodontal fibers surrounding the teeth & thus makes the tooth loose & painful.

Even pressure beyond normal limits due to night grinding can cause vertical bone loss which is more extensive than periodontal diseases & in turn lead to mobility of the teeth affecting it's functionality.

Night guard definitely help you by obstructing the clenching or grinding process as it prevents the direct contact between opposing teeth surfaces.

Thus, use of night guard not only protects the teeth but also the surrounding periodontium & alveolar bone from ill effects of Bruxism.

Grinding of teeth in night happens subconsciously, hence the force transmitted on to the teeth surfaces is multiple times as compared to that of chewing. our teeth are not designed to withstand this huge continuous force and hence wear of the occlusal surfaces takes place. This may in longer run result in many issues ranging from sensitive teeth to decreased vertical dimension of your face. A guard is just a protective layer worn on the teeth during night. it takes care of the excessive force and wears itself protecting the teeth. the severity can be guaged from the rate at which your guards wear. you will have to change the guards when they perforate, but it usually lasts long.

hi renu,
i read your problem,your dentist is absolutely right.your husband is having bruxism habit,in which he use to gring his teeth non intentionaly specially in the night.this habit will harm his teeth,like wear of tooth surfaces, muscle pain after waking up,teeth sensitivity,etc.....
treatment is dental night guards,which will redistribute the dental forces,prevent the teeth surface wear off,gradually helpful to stop the habit.so nothing to get worried.
please follow all the given instructions properly.
take care
Dr.Gunjan Gupta

Hello,
Thanks for writing to us.
Yes, It is useful .
Dental night-guards are helpful for bruxism caused by sleep disorders, crooked or missing teeth or stress. It is made by dentist to fit your teeth, the night-guard slips over the teeth and prevents contact between them. It helps relieve pressure of grinding or clenching, which can damage delicate jaw joints and muscles.
Hope this helps you.
Wishing you good health...
Regards.

hello grinding of teeth in night (bruxism) is an habit which cause erosion of the enamel layer of the tooth and in advanced stages may damage the dentin toothe effect is seen in the form of sensitive teethso to prevent the erosion of tooth structure the dentist normally prescribes a dental night guardas the word itself suggests , it is a plastic mould that fits on your lower teeth and guards the tooth structure from eroding in the nightalthough it does not stop the habit howvere bruxism is mostly indicative of some internal disorder as tmj problem , anxiety , high blood pressure etc etcso what i would suggest is that in due course get a complete clinical examination to rule out any such problembest of luck

Hi,Welcome to HCM forum,The habitual, involuntary grinding of the teeth, usually during sleep is called Bruxism.Bruxism causes many long term problems that can be painful and costly.Treatment for this is Night guards.It is custom-fit to either your upper or lower teeth and worn at night to prevent grinding in your sleep. Take care

your husband has been suffering from teeth grinding or bruxism. night guards are appliances made of polyvinylsiloxane and prepared in the lab after taking impressions. they are worn at night when your husband would grind his teeth. night guards prevent the attrition of the teeth due to grinding otherwise the teeth would gradually reduce in lenghth.

according to the data provided by you it seems that your husband is suffering from bruxism which is a common problem in our field,and it truely causes attrition of teeth.your doctor has done the right job by suggesting him the night guard.....these are like transperant covering of teeth made up of thermoplastic flexible material.these night guards are to be put on at night before sleeping and to be kept overnight in mouth.this will act as a cushion and will minimise the impact of unconscious biting force at night....that is how it's 'useful for teeth grinding'.
wish you and your husband good health.thank you.

hi
in your husbands case night guards are a must. they are simple devices to prevent teeth from grinding against each other. in simple terms , they are just a barrier between the upper and lower teeth to prevent them from grinding against each other which is known as attrition.

Hello,
Night mouth guards are bite pads that are supposed to be worn at night as you sleep. These guards are usually made of high-grade plastic and should fit the teeth or mouth perfectly. This device keeps the upper teeth from grinding with the lower teeth, offering an instant solution to teeth clenching problems.
Take care...

Dental Night Guards are basically appliances which prevent teeth being abraded by involuntary grinding. Night grinding results in loss of enamel and the patient develops sensitivity. It also leads to TMJ joint problem and Musculo-skeletal issues
It is best to use this . Please use some stress relieving tabs so that the sleep is normal. Dont make this a habit.

this is a prosthetic appliance made for preventive measures, , this can help a lot in the fixing of the saidissue of your husband. try to make your husband cool and normal and make his tension and worries release, as this teeth grinding or clinching is more associated with neurological issues,

Night guard are bite pads that are supposed to be worn at night as you sleep. These guards are made up of high-grade plastic and should fit the teeth or mouth perfectly. This device keeps the upper teeth from grinding with the lower teeth, offering an instant solution to teeth clenching problems.

welcome to health care magic,
this is non functional grinding of teeth..night guards will sure help,..these are made after taking impression of the dentition..this will reduce the load on teeth and jaws..regular visits after having them, to dentist is also necessary.and they should be regularly cleaned also before wearing...
thanks.

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